Where to file. Every State and recipient must have a process in place to address discrimination complaints. A recipient is defined as an entity that receives Federal financial assistance generally from the U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL) to provide aid, benefits, services, or training to the public.  In most cases, the complainant (the person filing a complaint) may choose to file either with the recipient at the State or local level or with USDOL’s Civil Rights Center (CRC). These options are explained below.

Requirements for all complaints. Regardless of where a complaint is filed, the complaint must be in writing, and must include the following information:

  • The name of and contact information of the complainant;
  • The name of and contact information of the recipient (entity) that you believe discriminated;
  • A description of the discriminatory act(s) that occurred, with enough detail about what occurred, when it occurred, and what you believe was the basis or cause of the discrimination (such as race, disability, or national origin); and
  • The complainant’s signature or the signature of their authorized representative.

Downloading Forms Notification

How to Download CRC Forms. In order to access a form, you MUST:

  • Right-click or use Shift + F10 keys/context menu key (Windows) and then choose the "Save link as"
  • Save the file on your computer
  • Open the file saved on your computer
  • Edit the file
Warning

Filing a Complaint at the State or Local Level.  Every recipient, except small recipients and service providers, must designate a recipient-level Equal Opportunity Officer. In addition, every Governor must designate an individual as a State-level Equal Opportunity Officer (State level EO Officer). These Equal Opportunity Officers are responsible for developing and publishing the recipient’s procedures for filing and processing discrimination complaints. 
After a recipient reviews or investigates a complaint, a recipient must issue a written Notice of Final Action on a complaint within 90 days of the date on which the complaint is filed. If a complainant is dissatisfied with the recipient’s decision on the complaint, the complainant (or their representative) may file a complaint with CRC within 30 days after the date they receive the recipient’s Notice of Final Action.

Alternatively, if a recipient fails to issue a Notice of Final Action within 90 days of the complaint filing, the complainant (or their representative) may file the complaint with CRC within 30 days after the end of the 90-day period (in other words, within 120 days of the date the original complaint was filed with the recipient).

Filing a Complaint with CRC . An initial complaint filed directly with CRC must be filed within 180 days of the alleged discrimination. It may be possible for CRC to extend the timeframe but there must be a good “cause” reason to do so. Complainants are encouraged to file by completing CRC's Complaint Information Form (CIF) and Privacy Act Consent Form, which are available at the links below:

If the CIF and Privacy Act Consent Form are not submitted initially, CRC will send these forms to the complainant to be completed, signed, and returned. CRC cannot process a complaint without these signed forms.

Complaints, CIFs and Privacy Act Consent Forms may be submitted to CRC in the following ways: 
Sent by postal mail to:

Director
Civil Rights Center
ATTENTION: Office of External Enforcement
U.S. Department of Labor
200 Constitution Ave NW
Room N-4123
Washington, DC 20210
Faxed to 202-693-6505, ATTENTION: Office of External Enforcement (limit of 15 pages)
A complainant has the right to be represented in the complaint process by a person of their choosing such as an attorney or other representative at their own cost.

CRC Complaint Processing CRC evaluates all incoming complaints based on the authority or jurisdiction we are given under the laws that CRC enforces and whether the complaint was filed in a timely manner. When CRC does not have authority or jurisdiction to handle a complaint, CRC may refer the complainant to another Federal agency that may have appropriate jurisdiction.

If the complaint is accepted, a CRC investigator is assigned to collect relevant evidence.  CRC investigators do not represent complainants or recipients; rather, they are neutral fact-finders. During this process, complainants may be asked to provide additional information. Based on the evidence gathered, CRC will make a legal analysis and issue a written determination notifying the parties whether the law has been violated.

A recipient is prohibited from retaliating against any person who has filed a complaint, testified, or participated in an investigation or other equal opportunity proceeding.

CRC is committed to ensuring that communications with individuals with disabilities are as effective as communications with other individuals. If you are a person with a disability and require auxiliary aids and services in order to file a complaint, to access the CRC complaint form, or during the CRC complaint process, please contact us at CRCExternalComplaints@dol.gov or by phone at 202-693-6500.

*If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, you can access telecommunications relay services by dialing 7-1-1.